Be Aware of Lyme Disease: Learn the Symptoms and Effects

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection caused by members of the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato complex, a spirochete that is transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected tick. There are different types of ticks, and the most common types of ticks to be infected are black-legged (deer) ticks and western black-legged ticks. Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says more than 300,000 cases of Lyme disease are diagnosed each year. Ticks also carry other infections and people who have Lyme may also have other tick infections, called co-infections. These can carry their own set of symptoms and treatment needs.

Lyme disease can be very serious and can affect many systems of the body, including joints, the heart and the nervous system. If Lyme is caught early and treated, it is usually effective. However, there are also many who live with persistent and ongoing debilitating symptoms. For those in this category there can also be challenges with controversies around the differing views: Are the symptoms the result of post-Lyme disease treatment or an ongoing infection?

Just this year, the CDC has said, “Infections can sometimes leave people with symptoms that last for weeks to months or longer, even after appropriate treatment.” Navigating a medical system that often dismisses the patient’s experience is challenging to say the least, and I’m hopeful that this shift in recognizing ongoing symptoms will help the medical system to provide better care and solutions for those who have ongoing symptoms.

Testing

Testing for Lyme disease is challenging as the tests available are poor. They rely on observing the immune system response of the individual. If the test is done too early or late in the infection process, the individual may or may not have a negative test, despite having Lyme.

This high rate of false negative tests is problematic. The International Lyme and Associated Disease Society says: “Lyme disease is a clinical diagnosis based on the history and physical findings, and supported by appropriate laboratory tests when they are indicated. These elements must be considered in the context of the individual patient’s full story and with consideration of other diagnoses that may explain or confound the patient’s diagnosis. No single element of the diagnostic process outweighs the full and complete evaluation.” Finding a doctor familiar with and skilled with Lyme disease is necessary for getting a diagnosis in the case of chronic symptoms.

Prevention

When you are outside, especially in long grass, it is recommended to wear pants and tuck your pants into your socks. You can spray your shoes and body with tick repellant/bug spray. You can use deet or a stronger spray on shoes and a more natural spray on skin to limit exposure to chemicals. After being outside, check yourself! Ticks are often found in armpits, groins or in the scalp, although they can attach anywhere. If you do find a tick, learn how to remove it here.

While most medical doctors are only concerned if a tick has been attached for at least 36 hours, there are some studies that have shown some risk of Lyme disease being transmitted in less than 24 hours, so I encourage being proactive if you find a tick that has been attached for any period of time.

Symptoms

Common symptoms of early Lyme disease include:

• Rash (80% are solid-colored, and less than 20% have a bull’s eye appearance)

• Fever

• Headache

• Fatigue

• Muscle and joint pain

Once the infection extends beyond the skin, it can affect any system of the body and symptoms can vary between individuals but can include:

• Debilitating fatigue

• Headaches

• Muscle pain

• Arthritis

• Numbness

• Tingling

• Nerve pain and weakness

• Heart problems

• Psychiatric symptoms

• Difficulty with thinking, memory, language and math skills

• Problems with vision and hearing

If you’ve been exposed to a tick and develop any of these symptoms, you should reach out to your doctor right away!

My personal experience with having Lyme disease has hugely impacted my life and my health in the last decade in numerous ways. I share all of this not to scare you, but to educate you. We live in a high tick area and chances are you know someone who has, or who had, Lyme disease. I hope that education about this disease empowers you to feel confident in what to do if you are bitten by a tick.

Enjoy the beautiful area that we live in. Play outside, hike, run in the woods. Then check yourself for ticks and prepare to take action if necessary. The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) has a lot of information on their website: www.ilads.org.

How to Build a Healthy Foundation for Spring

What are the foundational things you do to care for yourself? These are things that offer support, consistency and a solid foundation for the rest of your life.

Sleep and Rest

Sleep is so necessary and so many people don’t get enough sleep. Getting enough sleep is one of the first things I’m curious about for anyone who’s having pain, fatigue or feeling especially overwhelmed. If you’re a night owl, you may consider going to bed a bit earlier as we get our more restorative sleep earlier in the evening. Spending less time on screens in the evening or following a relaxing evening routine can also be helpful with sleep quality. Try a warm bath or stretching as part of your evening routine. Short rest breaks during the day can also be really helpful, especially if you have chronic health challenges or feel like your nervous system needs a midday reset. We aren’t designed to constantly be on the go. Taking time to rest can help your energy and your capacity to do all the things you want and need to do. I think it’s really nice to let our bodies find a horizontal position for midday rest, but getting outside also can be a nice way to rest, especially if you’re on screens a lot.

Movement

Movement is another foundation that is so important to have in place for good health. As the seasons change, you might find that what you want to do for your exercise changes. It’s a beautiful time to walk outside, and it makes sense to shift these habits with the seasons. You might also notice you have a burst of extra energy and want to push yourself a bit more. This is a great time of year to focus on goals and use that energy to build some new habits around your exercise routine.

Nutrition

Of course, good nutrition plays a large role in helping us feel our best. General eating tips that I think are useful for almost everyone:

• Eat a rainbow of vegetables.

• Eat plenty of healthy fats and proteins.

• Limit processed sugar.

• Pay close attention to how your body feels eating gluten and dairy, as many people feel best limiting or avoiding these foods.

• Eat when you’re hungry.

What we eat can be influenced by the time of year. If you were craving warm and heavier foods in the winter, you might notice the shift now to wanting more vegetables and lighter foods as we move into spring. Spring is also a nice time to add in bitter greens, such as arugula, radicchio and endive. Bitter greens support liver health, which is especially helpful in the springtime. Noticing how your nutrition cravings change with the seasons can be a way to focus more on what your body needs right now.

On the liquids side of nutrition, be sure to drink enough water! Many people aren’t drinking enough. If you are feeling tired and sluggish during the day, see if drinking more water helps you have more energy.

Mind Your Internal State

Our nervous system states shift all the time. Tuning in to notice this allows us to be in tune with what’s happening and what sort of support we might need in the moment. This simple check in can be as simple as noticing areas in the body that feel soft and expansive. Or noticing tightness or tension. Notice your feet on the ground, or notice your breath in and breath out. You can notice things from a felt sense and also from an emotional perspective: I’m feeling happy today or I’m feeling sad. Sometimes just noticing and naming this can help our bodies feel supported.

All of these areas give a strong foundation for health. They are the things you can circle back to again and again when you need a little more support and self care.

Ginger-Dill Salmon Salad

This recipe is from The New York Times, and it’s simple, fresh and perfect for spring!

Ingredients:

1 ½ lbs salmon filet

Salt and pepper

6 Tablespoons finely chopped dill

1 (2 inch) piece of ginger, peeled and finely grated

2 Tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving

1 grapefruit

2 oranges

6 radishes cut into thin slices

1 avocado

Salad greens

Flaky sea salt for finishing (optional)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 325. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Pat the salmon dry and place on the tray skin side down and season with salt and pepper.

In a medium bowl, stir together the dill, ginger and olive oil until combined and season with salt and pepper. Spread half the mixture on top of the salmon. Reserve the remaining dill-ginger mixture. Bake until the salmon is cooked through, 15-20 minutes. The salmon is done when the fish flakes or a meat thermometer is 120 degrees.

While the salmon cooks, cut off the top and bottom of the grapefruit and set the grapefruit down on one of the cut sides, and then carefully cut away the peel and pith. Squeeze the peels into the remaining dill-ginger mixture to get out any juice. Cut the grapefruit in half from top to bottom, then slice into ¼ inch thick half moons and remove the seeds. Transfer the fruit and any juice to the bowl. Repeat with the oranges. Add the sliced radishes and season generously with salt, stir gently to combine.

Break the salmon into large pieces and mix with the salad greens, citrus and radishes. Pit, peel and cut the avocado into chunks and top with the juices from the bowl, black pepper, another drizzle of olive oil and flaky salt if desired.

Enjoy!

*This recipe says it serves four, but in our household, it only serves two, potentially with some leftovers.

Life Is Hard: Learn to Love and Care for Yourself Through Challenges

“To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest. To live fully is to be always in no-man's-land, to experience each moment as completely new and fresh. To live is to be willing to die over and over again. ”
— Pema Chödrön, author and ordained Buddhist nun in the Vajrayana tradition

Life is hard. At some point, we all experience things that are challenging, times that push us to our edges and experiences that we wish we didn’t have to go through. I’m touched by the hard things that we all navigate and grateful for the trust you have in me when you share your hardships with me. I’ve been reflecting back on hard seasons of my own life and what those times gave me, in spite or perhaps because of their challenges.

I think that so much of life’s beauty can be found by learning to love ourselves and care for ourselves through these challenges. And while there is lots of advice out there, I hope you give yourself permission to take what you like and what resonates with you and leave the rest. Going through a period of challenge can be lonely. As a society, we aren’t good with sitting with what’s uncomfortable, which can make it feel even harder if you aren’t moving through your hardships “fast enough” for those around you. Sometimes the people who you thought would support you don’t (or can’t) and you can feel like you are braving the storm alone. There isn’t a set timeline and it’s important to honor your needs and not listen to the (mostly well meaning) advice that may be offered.

I think we all can benefit from support, especially when life is rough. Do you need support? Can you ask for support and have that ask be honored? You might find support in a different place than where you anticipated it, but finding the right support can really help.

Are you taking care of yourself? It can seem so basic, but ensuring that you are sleeping, eating well and moving your body are foundations of health that help us all the time. These foundations can be something to lean on when things feel harder than normal.

Our experiences shape us and leave an impact on who we are. Moments eb and flow and never stay the same. Be gentle with yourself as you navigate challenges and reach out if you need support.

Thoughts on "Bad" Posture

How important is having “good” posture? What is good posture and how much does it matter for how we feel in our bodies?

I’ve had so many people over the years tell me how “bad” their posture is. Pilates is known as exercise that promotes good posture, and when I was in my training program there was a lot of focus on assessing and cueing for better posture with the idea that the “good” posture is better and also prevents or heals injuries. 

The more I learn, there are aspects of this that aren’t really so black and white. We do ourselves a disservice in labeling one posture as good and another as bad. There aren’t any bad postures. Your body isn’t bad. You might have developed patterns and ways of sitting, standing and moving that feel set in place, sure. But I don’t think there is some magical perfect posture to obtain. I do think it is interesting to be aware of what changes your posture (hint, often it is your emotional and nervous system state!) and what your awareness of comfort, discomfort, tension and ease are in different postures. 

Our bodies are designed to move and to explore different ranges of motion and different ways of being in our bodies. When we explore different ways of moving, and different postural alignments, we are bringing more options and more choice to our bodies, which is a wonderful thing. I think it’s fun to explore posture and movement from this perspective, instead of feeling that we are bad and need to be fixed.

How does your experience of your posture change when you approach changes from a place of curiosity and playfulness, instead of feeling like something is wrong with you? Questions or thoughts let me know!